The sharp sound of snapping twigs sounded from my right, and both Kaye and I stopped to look. I had my camera ready, incase it was a wild animal, but I was beginning to suspect that it wasn't. After all, it had been following us for the last ten minutes, and most animals here are not that comfortable around human presence.

I egged Kaye on, and she followed me after a brief moment of hesitation. I'm sure her canine senses confirmed my suspicions. She was usually much more lively and energetic at the thought of chasing a squirrel or fox- heck, even a deer!

My backpack was heavy on my shoulders and my thighs were beginning to ache and throb as we hiked up the rocky coast. I had decided to treat myself to a short weekend getaway with Kaye, my assistant German Shepherd at a nearby nature reserve. We were already on the second day, and making excellent progress, but the fact that I had no phone reception- nor did I see any park rangers walking around since I started- made me worry somewhat. If whoever or whatever it was didn't stop shadowing us within the next two minutes, I would confront them.

I didn't have to wait two minutes.

Just as I passed a thicket of shrubs, Kaye gave two sharp barks and I found myself being pushed viciously to the ground. The backpack cushioned most of my fall, but some of the heavier and sharper items dug into my back. I exhaled sharply in pain. I felt a hand on my chest, pressing my down, and another around my throat.

"Got you!" Came the delighted announcement from my attackers mouth. He was around his thirties, with a handsome face, dark hair, and darker eyes. But he wasn't familiar. I had never met him in my life and I could see that his intentions were far from friendly.

I heard more footsteps behind him and I flailed wildly, trying to look around and see who else was coming.

"See? Told you it wouldn't be too hard," a voice said- another man. But he spoke too soon.

Just then, Kaye launched herself onto my attacker, sinking her teeth deep into the man's arm. He cried out suddenly and let go of my neck. Instinctively, I kicked upwards, hitting him in a particularly sensitive area, and managed to shove him on to his back before scrambling to my feet. Kaye had let go and was snarling at the bleeding man.

Despite his injury, the man didn't hesitate as soon as he recovered from the pain. He jumped forward again, grabbing my ankle and pulling my foot off the ground. I lost my balance and fell on my back a second time. "Get the damn dog!" he cried out to his partner, who nodded and tried to grab Kaye's neck before she got to my attacker a second time.

He managed to grab the scruff of her neck for a moment, but he had underestimated her strength. Soon, she was also leaving bite marks along his arms and hands as well. She even tried to reach for more critical points on his body, but couldn't as he was trying to run away and push her back.

In the meantime, my aggressor smiled repulsively at me and tried to use his hands to reach the belt that held my pants up. Blood trailed and stained the light grey material of my trousers. I felt my heartbeat race as I tried to thrash out of his grip. "Relax," he tried to coax me and despite the situation, I scoffed at his attempt of calming me down. Just then, I heard the assailant bolt with Kaye hot on his heels.

"Ka-" I tried to call her back to help me, but the man had managed to clamber closer to me and had a hand clamped over my mouth. I still squirmed, trying to shove him off of me to run this time, but he wouldn't be made a fool of again.

To prove his point, he used a knee to pin me down securely, before using his now free hand to pull a switchblade from his pocket. Holding the handle tightly, blade pointing downwards, he gave me a sick grin before he thrust it into my leg.

I barely had time to scream before Kaye was on his neck, dragging him away from and shaking her head sideways for an improved grip. And though this may sound weird, or even a bit cliché, I don't really remember what happened after that.

I know I wasn't unconscious- no, I had tried to make a run for it. But everything has becoming jumbled up in my head before slowly fading out into pitch-black nothingness. I could not recall how it ended, what happened to me, or how Kaye fared, nor could I recall anything about the attackers after she had bitten into the man's neck.

Next thing I remembered, I was underwater. I could hear the sound of the waves and feel soft sand and pebbles under my hands. The water was brackish and there was an odd metallic taste to it.

It didn't take too long before panic gripped me as I realized my situation. I was drowning. Pressing my palms against the sand, I pushed myself up without even opening my eyes. To my relief, I had only been a few decimeters below the surface. I spat out all the water in my mouth and gulped in a gracious mouthful of air.

Finally opening my eyes, I looked around to see that it was dark. There were visible cliffs against the moonlight, but they were far from where I was situated. The only thing that made sense was that I had probably fallen off the cliff at the top of the coast hike, only to drift to the shore. The said shore was only just behind me, and I used my hands to pull myself up on drier lands. I realized my backpack was still on my back, and I took it off, throwing it several feet away from me into the sand.

I panted, trying to replenish my oxygen supply as quickly as I could. Everything around me was unfamiliar. I had never seen a sandy shore such as this one from the height of the trail I'd been on. I had drifted quite far.